This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-289312, filed Sep. 22, 2000, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a recording head and a magnetic recording apparatus.
In the field of computers, a magnetic disc apparatus is widely used as a large capacity external storage capable of random access. With increase in the use of the magnetic disc apparatus, demands for increases in storage capacity and in recording density of the magnetic disc apparatus are being made higher and higher.
As a method for increasing the recording density of the magnetic disc apparatus, proposed is perpendicular magnetic recording. In the perpendicular magnetic recording, a demagnetizing field in a magnetization transition can be made very low so as to narrow the magnetization transition width, compared with longitudinal magnetic recording. As a result, high-density recording can be achieved in the perpendicular magnetic recording. Also, in order to improve recording and reproducing efficiency in the perpendicular magnetic recording so as to form a sharper magnetization transition, proposed is a magnetic disc of a two-layered perpendicular medium in which a soft magnetic backing layer is formed below a perpendicular magnetic recording layer.
A magnetic head used for a two-layered perpendicular medium is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Kokai Publication No. 7-225912. The magnetic head disclosed in this prior art comprises a reproducing section and a recording section formed integral with the reproducing section, the recording section including a main magnetic pole and an auxiliary magnetic pole, which are arranged with a gap, and an exciting coil. The auxiliary magnetic pole is recessed from the air-bearing surface of the main magnetic pole, and a projecting section projecting toward the main magnetic pole is arranged on the surface of the auxiliary magnetic pole that faces the main magnetic pole.
In this magnetic head, a magnetic field is weak below the auxiliary magnetic pole having a large air-bearing area. In addition, it is possible to suppress broadening of the magnetic field by allowing the auxiliary magnetic pole to be recessed from the air-bearing surface of the main magnetic pole. It should also be noted that, since the projecting section projecting toward the main magnetic pole is arranged on the surface of the auxiliary magnetic pole that faces the main magnetic pole, it is possible to permit the magnetic flux from the backing layer to pass sufficiently into the auxiliary magnetic pole so as to improve reproducing characteristics. However, since the improvement of the reproducing characteristics is limited in this magnetic head, it is necessary to use a reproducing element such as a giant magnetoresistive element (GMR element).
As a magnetic head using a GMR element in the reproducing section, known is a merge type structure having a common magnetic pole acting both as one of a pair of shields of the reproducing section sandwiching the GMR element and as an auxiliary electrode of the recording section. In this structure, reproducing sensitivity is lowered if the common magnetic pole acting both as a shield and as an auxiliary electrode is recessed from the air-bearing surface of the main magnetic pole. Therefore, it is insignificant to permit the common magnetic pole to be recessed from the air-bearing surface of the main magnetic pole. In order to weaken magnetic field intensity below the common magnetic pole in this structure, it is necessary to increase considerably the air-bearing area of the common magnetic pole. However, it has been clarified that, if a track pitch is narrowed with improvement in recording density, the magnetic field generated under the common magnetic pole extends to reach adjacent tracks. It follows that, when recording is repeatedly performed in a certain track, information recorded in the adjacent tracks may be erased.
On the other hand, in a magnetic head in which the reproducing section and the recording section are separated from each other, it is possible to permit only the auxiliary magnetic pole of the recording section to be recessed from the air-bearing surface of the main magnetic pole. As a result, it is possible to suppress broadening of the magnetic field under the auxiliary magnetic pole so as to avoid the adverse effect given to the adjacent tracks. It has been found, however, that, in this structure, the magnetic flux passing through the shields of the reproducing section is increased and, thus, information in the adjacent tracks may be erased by the magnetic field under the shields.
An object of the present invention is to decrease, in a recording head of a separated type, a magnetic flux passing through shields of a reproducing section even if an auxiliary magnetic pole is recessed from the air-bearing surface of a main magnetic pole so as to prevent the magnetic fields under the auxiliary magnetic pole and under the shields of the reproducing section from adversely affecting adjacent tracks, thereby providing a recording head and a perpendicular magnetic recording apparatus having improved reliability even in high-density recording.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording head, comprising a main magnetic pole, an auxiliary magnetic pole provided to face the main magnetic pole with a gap and recessed from an air-bearing surface of the main magnetic pole, an exciting coil, a reproducing element, a pair of reproducing shields sandwiching the reproducing element, one of the reproducing shields adjacent to the auxiliary magnetic pole being positioned apart from the auxiliary magnetic pole by such a distance that a magnetic field generated in recording under the auxiliary magnetic pole becomes larger than a magnetic field under the reproducing shield.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a magnetic recording apparatus, comprising a two-layered medium comprising a soft magnetic backing layer and a perpendicular recording layer, and a recording head comprising a main magnetic pole, an auxiliary magnetic pole provided to face the main magnetic pole with a gap and recessed from an air-bearing surface against the medium of the main magnetic pole, an exciting coil, a reproducing element, a pair of reproducing shields sandwiching the reproducing element, one of the reproducing shields adjacent to the auxiliary magnetic pole being positioned apart from the auxiliary magnetic pole by such a distance that a magnetic field generated in recording under the auxiliary magnetic pole becomes larger than a magnetic field under the reproducing shield.
In the recording head and the magnetic recording apparatus of the present invention, it is desirable for the distance L between the auxiliary magnetic pole and the reproducing shield positioned adjacent to the auxiliary magnetic pole to meet the relationship in the following formula:
L greater than Dxc2x7S1/S3
where D represents a recessed distance of the auxiliary magnetic pole from the main magnetic pole, S1 represents an overlapping area between the auxiliary magnetic pole and the reproducing shield, and S3 represents an air-bearing area of the reproducing shield.
Further, in the magnetic recording apparatus of the present invention, it is desirable for the perpendicular recording layer to show a magnetization curve in which a point at which irreversible magnetic reversal begins to take place resides in the second quadrant, and an absolute value of a magnetic field corresponding to an intersection between a tangential line of the magnetization curve drawn from a point of coercive force in a region where an applied magnetic field is negative and a straight line drawn in a horizontal direction from a point of residual magnetization is greater than a magnetic field generated under the auxiliary magnetic pole in recording.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.